


The Dog Chooses its Person

by GabrielLives



Series: Non-Gabriel Richard Speight Jr Bingo [2]
Category: North Beach (2000), North Beach - Fandom
Genre: Gen, Light Swearing, street dogs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-28
Updated: 2019-05-28
Packaged: 2020-03-26 12:41:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19006012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GabrielLives/pseuds/GabrielLives
Summary: Pete runs into a problem on his way to the cafe. A problem that won't stop following him.





	The Dog Chooses its Person

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This was written for my non Gabriel bingo card. The square filled was "gets a dog"  
> I just love the thought of a stray dog following Pete around all the time.

“ _ I know... _ no man, what do I know. I don't know shit. ummm...oh!  _ You know, you knooooow!  _ Aw yeah, man!  _ You know, you knooooow/who I am, to my soooul!  _ Shit, that is killer! I need a fucking pen.”

Pete smacked around on his pockets, mumbling the lyrics over and over so he wouldn't forget.

“Come on, man,” he groaned as he spun on the street, coming up empty as he slapped his back pockets. “Fuuuck!” 

He needed to find a pen, right the fuck now. After being awake for thirty hours, there was no way that he was going to remember them. Hell, he can barely remember his last cigarette. But he knew he was by the cafe, and he took off. He cut through a side alley, still grumbling to himself, his hands rubbing his temples trying to keep himself focused. 

“Can't lose ‘em, can't lose ‘em,” Pete mumbled as he turned back onto the main road, skidding to a stop with a harsh yelp. Right in front of him, blocking his way, was a dog. It was huge, but way too skinny, a mixed breed street dog with sad, dark eyes. As it sniffed along looking for something to eat, it raised its head, locking eyes with Pete and not letting go. 

“Uhh, ok.”

Pete stepped to the side, trying to go around, only to be blocked. He tried the other side, only to be matched by the dog step for step. 

“H’yaaaaa!” Pete cried suddenly, seeing if he could scare it away.

The dog simply looked on, planting his rump on the ground as Pete waved his arms, trying to shoo the dog away. But the dog just sat there, tongue hanging out as it lightly panted in the morning heat. 

With a growl, Pete turned and stalked out into the street, huffing at the dog as he stomped towards the cafe. Under the murmur of his angry complaining, Pete missed the sound of nails clicking along the asphalt behind him.

~~

The tiny bell over the door roared as Pete stumbled in like a hurricane.

“Pen!” he cried, “I need a pen!”

“Hey Pete,” Joe answered casually, an ease in his voice that only managed to drive Pete crazier. “Get ya a coffee?”

“I don't have time for any of your bullshit today, man. I just need a pen!”

Joe scoffed with a shake of his head, still smiling as grabbed a pen from by the register and tossed it across the bar top. Pete caught it mid air, muttering to himself as he began scribbling lyrics on his arm.

“Decaf then, Pete?” Joe questioned, pouring a fresh cup without a response. 

“Yeah, yeah, that’s great,” Pete said, referring more to the words flowing on his wrist than the coffee in his cup. 

“Need some paper?” Tyler had slid quietly into the stool next to his friend, tilting his head so he could get a better look at Pete’s arm. 

“Tyler, my man, this is some next level shit right here.” Pete’s head never lifted while he spoke, pen still moving. “It’s the one. I can hear this in my head. The song that’ll make us fucking famous.”

“I bet,” Tyler laughed, “you already have a groupie.”

The pen stilled on his skin, and Pete’s focused eyes rose to Tyler, confusion bouncing in them alongside his excitement. Tyler nodded his head towards the large front window, grabbing Pete’s untouched coffee for himself as his friend looked away.

“Oh, what the fuck?!” Pete yelled. The street dog was sitting on the sidewalk, nose pressed up against the glass and it’s tongue hanging to the side happily, those dog eyes staring straight at Pete. 

His stool scrapped across the floor as Pete left the cafe with the same energy he arrived, his muffled shouting at the dog drifting through the window. Joe and Tyler shared a laugh as they watched Pete flail wildly, the dog clearly not getting the message, his tail waving excitedly as it barked happily along with Pete. 

"Ugh," Tyler's smile turning into a grimace at his first sip of Pete's coffee, "is this decaf?"


End file.
